What is the difference between foremilk and hindmilk

Most babies get the nutrients they need to grow by following their own unique feeding pattern. Breast fullness is a measure of fat content. The fuller the breast, the lower the fat content of the milk and the greater the difference in fat content between the milk obtained first and the milk obtained last. The emptier the breast, the higher the fat content and the lesser the difference between the milk obtained at the start of the feeding and the milk obtained at the end.

One of the amazing things about human milk is its ability to change from month-to-month, week-to-week, day-to-day, feeding-to-feeding, and from start to finish during a single feeding. As the baby breastfeeds, the increase in fat content is gradual, with the milk becoming fattier and fattier over time as baby becomes closer to draining the breast.

Whether babies breastfeed often for shorter periods or go for hours between feedings and feed longer, their total daily fat consumption does not actually vary.

This is because the baby who breastfeeds more often consumes foremilk higher in fat than the baby who breastfeeds less often. So in the end it all evens out. Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such.

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Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. The term foremilk refers to the milk at the beginning of a feeding; hindmilk refers to milk at the end of a feeding, which has a higher fat content than the milk at the beginning of that particular feeding.

There is no sharp distinction between foremilk and hindmilk— the change is very gradual. Milk production is not faster during letdown — the flow is simply faster. There are several let-downs per feed, although most mothers only sense the first one. As the breast starts to empty, the fat globules begin to dislodge and move down the ducts let-down facilitates this process.